On Tuesday, August 31st, Widener Law’s Delaware Campus hosted a live debate between Glen Urquhart and Michele Rollins, two of the three candidates running in the Rebuplican primary for the right to face Democrat John Carney in the general election for U.S. Representative from Delaware. The third Republican candidate, Rose Izzo, was invited but did not attend, citing a schedule conflict. WDEL 1150 AM News Talk Radio aired the debate live from the Ruby R. Vale Moot Court Room from 8:00 to 9:30 AM.

“Billionaires got the bailout and we were left with the bill,” said Urquhart in his closing comments as he hammered home the idea that the current establishment in Washington has been spendthrift and has ignored the dangerous of deficit spending. He added, “Debt destroys jobs,” and cited a piece of wisdom imparted to him by his father, saying, “The borrower is the slave to the lender."

Rollins too touched on the need for a new fiscal policy in Washington, remarking, “It’s that American dream – that opportunity – that I want to protect.” She also had plenty of criticism for Congress and the President. “This government has betrayed us,” she said.

While both candidates seemed to agree on the need for new economic policies and a tougher government position on immigration and border security, they spared on other issues. During a temperamental exchange on abortion, Urquhart called on Rollins to sign a pro-life pledge and accused her of trying to have it both ways. Rollins maintained, however, that she has consistently aid that she opposes abortion on a personal level, but that she believed the women of the country were capable of making such decisions for themselves.

Other topics touched on during the hour-and-a-half debate included national defense, education, and the credentials of the respective candidates. A question about how the candidates – both millionaires – could relate to the problems faced by the average person led to another verbal sparing match in which Urquhart noted that Rollins counted her millions in much greater numbers than he did. Both candidates tried to deflect the question by suggesting that they had not always been rich and had worked hard to get where they were.

WDEL 1150 AM morning news anchor Peter MacArthur served as the moderator for the debate while a panel made up of local journalists Allan Loudell of 1150 AM WDEL, Drew Ostroski of Delaware Today, and Doug Denison of the Dover Post asked questions of the candidates. Widener Law Public Relations Officer Mary Allen offered a short welcome before the debate began.